Story's Flight
by KrisEleven
Summary: A new caravan comes to trade with the castle, bringing more than just wares to sell. When one of their stories features dragons, Dragon sees the chance to find that which he has always looked for... but at what cost? An JatD exchange fic for Zero Skye.


A/N This was a story written for Lightning Flash's fic exchange!

Here's it's link: **http://community (dot) livejournal (dot) com/jandd_fanhq/32532 (dot) html**

This was a story written for Zero Skye, who wanted a serious friendship fic between Jane and Dragon that didn't involve character death. I hope you enjoy.

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High laughs, one followed by a snort, drifted into Dragon's dreams and he woke up slowly from his nap. He squinted both eyes open, closing them again and yawning as the bright midday sun reflected off the stone overpass he was lying on and nearly blinded him. He listened to the Jingle Boy and his stupid bells for a moment before opening one eye to watch Jane and the not-so-little princess laugh at the show the jester was putting on for them.

Somewhere in the shortlives' castle Jane's mother was calling for Lavinia and, by the sound of her calls the princess was skipping one of her lessons again to be entertained in the royal gardens. Smithy was talking to Pig as he readied his next project. At the gates, Gunther was standing guard still, but was talking to someone where before Dragon had drifted to sleep in the sunshine he had heard only slight shuffling and the occasional sigh out of the new knight.

Dragon rolled his eyes, stretched and yawned again before calling for Jane. Metal Legs had assigned her to be in the courtyard when the caravans finally came with their goods and horses and lots of wagons to sell their trinkets to the villagers. Dragon had been more interested in the gnat that refused to leave his tail alone, but apparently there would be lots of wagons and horses and goats and caravan-shortlives and village-shortlives and castle-shortlives, and somehow his Jane was supposed to keep them all in order.

When he had asked how, Old Creaky had replied that she was a knight of the realm and would surely find a way. And besides, _Sir_ Gunther would be there to help.

Jane had stepped on his tail before he could reply just where Gunther should stick that _Sir_ of his.

Jane had left Lavinia and Floppy Hat and was running over to where Dragon was lying. Her hair was long now, tied into a knot at the back of her head.

"Are they here?" She asked as she reached him.

"_Sir_ Gunther is yattering about where they can set up their stalls as we speak." Dragon yawned. "Yatter yatter, do not put the goats there, yatter yatter, you said _seven _wagons, blah blah blah."

Jane smiled. "Be nice."

"Who me? I am always nice."

"Right," she said in the way she had of making it clear she meant just the opposite. "Are you coming?"

"They are your knightly duties, not mine." Dragon replied as he shifted his weight to put his face into the sunshine.

"Lazy." Jane laughed as she ran under his overpass and into the training courtyard.

"I am 300 years older than you!" Dragon called after her as she disappeared into the stables. "Have some respect." He heard her giggle, and smiled before he fell back to sleep.

-----

The smell of sausage woke him up. He had been ignoring the noise the shortlives were making, more than actually sleeping since as the day went on there was more yelling, banging, shouting and even some singing in a language Dragon did not quite understand. He didn't really like sausage, but now that he was awake he could also smell Pepper's boiled cabbage and he could not possibly go back to sleep when that was in danger of going to waste. He got his legs under him and stood up, craning his neck to find the breeze where the smell was coming from. The sun was low in the sky, lengthening the shadows and leaving the inside of the castle in darkness, although the walls were still a rosy colour and the day held onto its heat. When Dragon was sure the smell was coming from the courtyard he took off from the wall, planning on landing nearby where surely Jane, Pepper or Lavinia would bring him something.

The main courtyard of the castle was filled with people. Wagons made a circle along the walls and were opened up to show shiny pieces of metal or stone, brightly dyed cloths, painted pictures, strings of jewelry or food. Villagers he recognized moved between the wagons, talking to the strangers and handling the trinkets, or near a trio of musicians, dancing or clapping to the beat. The music stopped as Dragon flew overhead. There were a few cries and some of the strangers even ducked to the ground.

"Everything is all right!" He heard Jane yell. "Dragon is a friend of the castle. There is no need to be alarmed." The musicians were the first to start up, the conversations started and there was laughter amongst the villagers, who conveniently forgot how frightened they had been when he had first appeared.

There was no space on the ground, so he landed on the wall again. Jane made her way through the crowd to him and he puffed out his chest, impressed by the reaction he had received.

"Ferocious entrance, right?"

"Very ferocious," she agreed. She sighed as she twisted her neck and the bones popped. "This turned out well."

"I smell cabbage."

"The king is making money off the caravan owners, for letting them use the courtyard. They are getting enough business from the villagers that they should come back again next year… Hopefully it will continue to add to the treasury. Father is optimistic."

"That cabbage does smell good."

Jane rolled her eyes. "Big newt! I will find you something to eat, since you are not listening to a word I am saying."

"A _big_ something!" Dragon called after her. She waved a hand over her shoulder to show she had heard him as she bounced down the stairs and disappeared into the crowd.

The people stopped going to the wagons and the crowd around the number of musicians grew so the wagons were closed up and drawn out of the way and fires were lit. Most of the villagers left the castle as it grew dark until it was only the castle folk like Jester, Smithy, Gunther and Jane and the caravan people left. Dragon finished the pot of boiled cabbage that Pepper had left especially for him and watched as Jane accepted a dance from Jester. The older knights had gone away, too old to frolic anymore and had given their former squires permission to have fun. Jane laughed as Jester spun her around in the last notes of the song and they held onto each other and smiled breathlessly as the last notes drifted away into the night air.

The musicians began putting away their instruments and conversations started. Without the crowds, there was finally room for Dragon to land and he did so, ignoring the gasps of people who had forgotten he was lurking in the dark. He made his way to Jane, pushing his head between her and Jingle Boy, who tumbled a bit to the side.

"Nice to see you too, Dragon." He said as he adjusted his cap.

"Is the party over? Can we go?" Dragon asked.

"For today it is, yes." Jane answered. She smiled at one of the strangers. "Thank you for the music."

"It is our pleasure, as well as a thank you for the lovely accommodations." He replied. He was old, with sun-leathered skin and white hair.

"There are rooms available, in the castle if you wish-"

"No, no." He smiled. "Your knight-master no doubt told you to repeat his offer, but we are very comfortable in our wagons and will sleep here tonight, as always. Thank you." He looked Dragon over as he spoke to Jane. "It has been many, many years since I have met one of your kind. I am pleased to see you still fly, my friend."

"You have met a dragon before?" Jane asked, gasping.

He nodded. "Many years ago, before my children were born."

"You met one near here? Near the mountain?" Dragon asked.

"No. Far from here, in the direction the sun rises. There were many of them in those lands."

"What happened to them?" Jane asked.

The old man shook his head. "I do not know. We left those lands to travel here. Perhaps they are still there." One of the strangers called and he said his good byes and left Jane and Dragon to walk slowly towards his wagon.

-----

"You heard what he said, Jane." Dragon repeated.

"Yes, I did. I heard, Dragon." Jane sighed, softly, but Dragon heard it even over the wind. It was almost a week later- the caravans had moved on and Jane and Dragon were flying a patrol over the kingdom. Dragon knew he was beginning to annoy his friend, but he could not understand why she was not as excited as he was. Dragons! To the east. "He said they were still there!"

"No. He said they were there when he left, before his children were born. He has great-grandchildren now, Dragon. I met them. This was years and years ago. If there were dragons, we would have heard about them from other travelers."

"We never ask! Not really. Maybe they are out there and we are so close. We should fly out and see for ourselves."

"We cannot leave our duties."

"I have no duties here."

"_I _do!"

"Gunther left after he was knighted! He was gone for months and months and months-"

"_Two_ months, Dragon."

"-and months. If he can go, you will be able to." Dragon nodded his head decisively. They would go to the east and find other dragons. He hardly noticed that Jane did not respond.

Jester met them in the courtyard when they landed. He smiled and walked up to them, holding out a hand to help Jane down. She accepted it, holding on as she slid off and landed on the dirt.

"Are you going to ask Metal Legs now?" Dragon asked.

"Ask what?" Jester asked.

"We are going east to look for dragons." Dragon said, moving around so he was facing them.

"Dragon," Jane said, and he was surprised that she sounded angry.

"What?" Dragon asked her, confused.

"You are?" Jester asked.

"I never said I would." Jane replied to Jester's question.

"You never said you would?" Dragon repeated. "Jane, there could be dragons out there! There could be dragons out there just waiting for me to find them! We have to go."

Jane dropped Jester's hand to move closer to Dragon. "We have no idea how long we would be gone. Probably much, much longer than Gunther was, Dragon."

"But we would find dragons."

"You do not know that! It was just a story from an old man who saw them years and years and years ago! Dragon, if we have never heard anything from someone else, then they probably are not there.

"We have to check." Dragon said firmly.

"I have duties. I have a- a life here, Dragon," Jane looked back at Jester. "I cannot simply leave it all behind just because we heard a story."

"A story about other dragons! What I have been searching for for three hundred years. If you do not want to come I will go alone!" Dragon said, sticking his nose into the air. He waited a moment, waited for Jane to tell him to stop being silly, of course he was not going alone. She said nothing. "I will go alone." He repeated, looking at her. She looked back at Jester again, taking a deep breath and letting out in a sigh. Still she said nothing.

She did not want to go. She did not want to help him. His best friend would not help him in what was most important to him. Dragon spread his wings and took to the sky. He told himself that the wind and the distance between them as he flapped his winds harder were the reasons he did not hear Jane call after him.

-----

He lay in his cave, watching the sunlight begin to light the sky in a dull, lifeless grey. He had not slept and did not feel much like it. He thought about Jane and the promises she had made. He tried to feel angry and managed to work up a bit of a righteous, betrayed anger but could not hold onto it. He felt too sad to give the other emotions any space to live inside his chest.

What did she not understand? She knew how alone he had been. She knew how important it was for him to find out about dragons, to meet someone like him. She knew how much he wanted this, how he had been searching his entire life. So why did she not want to come with him?

She was supposed to tell him not to leave. She was supposed to reassure him, tell him that she would go with him of course. Even if she could not do that, she was supposed to tell him not to be silly, that they would stay together.

Did she not care that they should stay together?

And when she was gone, he would be alone again.

He stood up, quickly, pacing to the back of his cave. He did not want to think about it even though he knew that one day she would…

That was why, more than any other reason- more than his desire to learn about his own past, more than his need to learn the truth about dragons- that he wanted to chase down that old man's story. To find someone who would not leave him.

But it did not matter. He would not leave Jane, could not leave her. Not even if, too soon, she would leave him forever.

There were footsteps on the stone outside his cave and he smelled her smell as she walked into the shadows of the cave: sweat and flowers and wax and horse. They stood together in the dark for a long moment.

"Dragon?" she called into the black. Of course, she could not see him. He walked towards her, imerging into the dim pre-dawn light.

She put down a heavy saddle-bag with a sigh, stretching her back out with an arch. "Sir Theodore and the King granted me permission to leave the castle under the direct order that if we should find dragons we will attempt to bring them into service of the kingdom." She said, looking at the ground. "I was selfish, Dragon. This is what you have wanted your whole life and I will not hold you back."

"There might not be any dragons there." He admitted, both to her and to himself. The glimmer of hope, however had been kindled.

She shrugged. "We will never know unless we look." She walked into the cave, wrapped her arms around his snout and pressed her cool face against his scales.

"What if we do not find anything?" He whispered.

"Then we will know we looked." She whispered back.

* * *


End file.
